Ming: I am fake, walking on thin ice

Chapter 193: The First Fleet of the Ming Dynasty, the Devil's Division, Dyeing the Sea Red with the Blood of Japanese Pirates
Taizhou Bay.

The majestic Ming warships were lined up on the sea. The most majestic of them was the command ship. Zhang Lun was at the bow, standing facing the wind, looking at the sea in the distance.

"General." The guards came over hastily, "This is from the Ning family."

Zhang Lun opened it immediately, and after scanning it, he was overjoyed: "Great, I finally know where the Japanese pirates are entrenched. Pass the order and prepare to set off."

"Yes!" The guards took the order and left.

Zhang Lun looked at the letter in his hand, which marked the three locations of the Japanese pirates, all on islands. Ning Dajia also said in the letter that she had already negotiated with two Japanese daimyo to sell them arms first. One of the daimyo gave her a piece of land on Kyushu Island as her foothold in Japan.

With this piece of land, she can gradually encroach on Japan. Of course, everything must be done step by step. First, she must gain the trust of the Japanese daimyos, which is not difficult. The daimyos need arms and various supplies, and she can provide them all.

The Ning family's caravan was extremely powerful. They were able to trade with the Portuguese and the Dutch, who also traded in arms. The Ning family traded silk for arms and sold them to the Japanese daimyo at ten times the profit.

"After destroying those Japanese pirates, we can help the Ning family destroy the pirates with greater power in the southeastern waters." Zhang Lun said to himself, "Then the Ning family will truly be the king of pirates in the East."

At this time, the guard came over to report: "General, everything is ready."

Zhang Lun waved his hand fiercely: "Let's go! This time, let's dye the sea red with the blood of the Japanese pirates!"

……

Beijing.

The imperial examination, held every three years, began. This time, there were more than five thousand candidates, making it an unprecedented event.

Outside the Imperial Examination Hall, the crowd was bustling but orderly. The examinees wore Confucian robes of various colors and square scarves on their heads. Some held scrolls and read silently; some closed their eyes to rest and adjust their mood; some encouraged each other.

Zhu Qizhen stood on the high building of the Imperial Examination Hall, overlooking this spectacular scene. Looking at those young and energetic faces, he was filled with indescribable pride and expectation. The prosperity of the imperial examination was also a symbol of the prosperity of the Ming Dynasty.

With the sound of a clear gong, the examination officially began. Candidates entered the Imperial Examination Hall one by one. At this time, the sun gradually became brighter and shone on the Imperial Examination Hall.

"I hope we can produce some talented people in the arts this time." Zhu Qizhen sighed.

"Your Majesty, are you also involved in the practical questions?" asked Yang Guifang on the side.

Zhu Qizhen smiled and said, "I just made some suggestions. Professional matters should be left to professionals. The Imperial College has recruited a few Dutch teachers, which is good and a good start. We in the Ming Dynasty need to introduce a large number of talents."

Yang Guifang's eyes were burning, he thought of Emperor Taizong of Tang in history books, who had talents from all ethnic groups in his court, and his "Zhenguan Reign" was a true heyday.

He thought to himself that if he could follow His Majesty and create a prosperous Ming Dynasty, his life would be worthwhile.

"Go back to the palace and wait for the result." Zhu Qizhen waved his hand, "Go and call Xu Youzhen, and we will discuss the spring farming in various places."

"As you wish." Yang Guifang nodded.

Zhu Qizhen stood on the upper floor for a while, muttering to himself in a low voice: "The gates of the nine heavens are opened, and people from all over the world are dressed in formal attire to pay homage to the emperor. When will the Ming Dynasty have such a grand scene?"

……

Northwest, Dunhuang City.

The Zhengtong Emperor stood on the city wall, and the military advisor Wu Xingdao stood behind him. The two of them looked at the yellow sand of the desert outside the city.

Although the desert still retains its unique majesty and grandeur, the yellow sand has already revealed the message of spring. In the distance, sparse green grass breaks through the ground, and near the edge of the city, a few early flowers bloom brightly, unafraid of the wind and sand.

The Zhengtong Emperor took a deep breath of the air that carried the fragrance of soil and flowers and plants, and smiled: "Mr. Wu, it is the beginning of spring again. The flowers in Jiangnan should be in full bloom at this time."

"Yes." Wu Xingdao smiled, his eyes dim, recalling his youth in Jiangnan.

The Zhengtong Emperor gave a bitter smile and said, "What a pity! Shaanxi and Gansu have tightened their inspections on those entering Guanxi. The goods of Weiyuan Escort Agency have also been confiscated twice. Now, our supply route is cut off."

Wu Xingdao frowned and said, "The Chamber of Commerce has stopped supplying us. I guess something must have happened in the capital. Your Majesty, please don't panic. There will definitely be news from the Junshan Society."

"I am not afraid. Guanxi is basically under our control now. We have gained a firm foothold and a solid foundation." The Zhengtong Emperor frowned. "I am worried about my mother in the capital."

Wu Xingdao bowed and said, "The Queen Mother has been through a lot, and she has her own way of surviving."

The Zhengtong Emperor nodded slowly, but his eyes were filled with worry. Wu Xingdao changed the subject and said, "Now, we are going to start infiltrating Shaanxi and Gansu. Liu Dingzhi is a serious threat and we must get rid of him."

"I think so too." The Zhengtong Emperor took a deep breath, "Let's go back and discuss this with Mr. Yuan. He is an expert in this area."

Wu Xingdao nodded and followed the orthodox emperor downstairs. Before he came, he had not expected that there would be two masters around the emperor, Xu Bin was good at strategy, and Yuan Bin was good at intelligence.

Moreover, Yuan Bin was an extremely skilled martial artist and had trained a personal guard that was no less skilled than the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

……

Xi'an, Governor's Office.

Governor Liu Dingzhi was reading official documents when Jinyiwei pacification envoy Ding Xiu came in hurriedly: "Old Liu, has Weiyuan Escort Agency shipped any goods to Guanxi recently?"

"No, they disappeared after the heavy snow before the New Year." Liu Dingzhi frowned, "What did you find out?"

A murderous intent flashed in Ding Xiu's eyes: "I suspect that some of the goods from Weiyuan Escort Agency have been transferred several times and arrived in Dunhuang. They are secretly supporting the fake emperor of Dunhuang."

Liu Dingzhi was not surprised, but just puzzled: "We checked strictly, there shouldn't be any banned items, right?"

Ding Xiu moved closer to him and lowered his voice, "Some checkpoints are under the charge of Commander Tan You. Although my people are keeping an eye on him, he has so many subordinates that we can't keep an eye on them all. Recently, we found some clues. Weiyuan Escort Agency sent silver to Dunhuang, and the amount was not small, through the checkpoints in the west."

"Humph, how daring." Liu Dingzhi snorted coldly, "Let's go and catch him right now."

Ding Xiu waved his hands and said, "Calm down. He is the commander-in-chief. You have no power to arrest people. Even if I am, I have to get an imperial decree to arrest people. Otherwise, we will alert the enemy. Besides, he is the Earl of Xinning. He has a title. We can't arrest people without solid evidence."

Liu Dingzhi pondered for a moment and said, "Well, I will report this to your majesty, and your majesty will find a reason to transfer him back to the capital, and let your majesty handle it."

"Yes!" Ding Xiu agreed, "This way, the situation in Shaanxi and Gansu will not be ruined."

Liu Dingzhi wrote as soon as he said he would, and soon finished the memorial and sent it to the capital. Ding Xiu was drinking tea at the side, looking at the thin Liu Dingzhi, and suddenly said: "I have a feeling that the false emperor of Dunhuang will not let you go, you have to be careful. So, I will select a team of people to be your guards." "This is Xi'an, it's not necessary, right?" Liu Dingzhi said.

"Do you know how the leader of Shazhou Guard, Yahansha, died?" Ding Xiu's eyes were like knives. "The false emperor should have had a personal guard who was specifically responsible for assassinating him. Old Liu, you are in charge of Shaanxi and Gansu. This is of great importance. You must not take it lightly."

Liu Dingzhi nodded: "Then choose a group of guards for me."

In the current situation, he knew that he could not allow anything to happen, otherwise, His Majesty would not be able to choose a suitable person to govern Shaanxi and Gansu.

……

Early morning court in Fengtian Hall, Beijing.

After the court session, the ministers were curious to see that the emperor was in a good mood. Zhu Qizhen stood up from the dragon chair, glanced at the ministers, and said in a deep voice:

"I just received victory news. Zhang Lun led our Ming navy to take the initiative to attack. We won three battles and wiped out the main force of the Japanese pirates. A total of more than 35,500 enemies were killed, while our army suffered less than 1,000 casualties. It was a great victory. Hahahaha. From now on, at least for the next two years, there will be no major threat from Japanese pirates in the southeast."

After hearing this, all the officials were delighted and bowed in unison:
"Congratulations to Your Majesty, congratulations to the Ming Dynasty!"

"Congratulations to Your Majesty, congratulations to the Ming Dynasty!"

"Congratulations to Your Majesty, congratulations to the Ming Dynasty!"

Zhu Qizhen was excited. The threat of Japanese pirates was temporarily eliminated. In the future, as long as Zhang Lun and Ning Rongrong cooperated, they would gradually control Japan and even the Southeast Asian waters. Then, there would be no large number of Japanese pirates coming to Ming.

Zhang Lun swept through three islands occupied by Japanese pirates. Wherever his army passed, not only were there no survivors, but even a scorched earth was left. The Ming navy was extremely cruel to the Japanese pirates, and Zhang Lun certainly did not say so directly in his memorial.

However, Shen Manqing did make a secret report, but there was no specific description. He only said that the overseas merchant caravans today called the Ming navy the devil's army.

Why is it a devil?

Zhu Qizhen would not delve into this issue, as long as he won the battle. Besides, fighting against the Japanese pirates was different from fighting between two countries, and there were rules to follow. In his opinion, he had to be ruthless and kill them so hard that they would never dare to invade the Ming Dynasty again.

After the court session, Zhu Qizhen did not take the sedan chair but walked back to the Palace of Heavenly Purity, with Yang Guifang following behind him. Zhu Qizhen said with a smile as he walked, "Zhang Lun, the twin pillars of the empire, is now famous all over the world. What do you think? You don't blame me for transferring you back to the capital, do you?"

Yang Guifang's eyes were clear. "Your Majesty, it would be a lie to say that I am not jealous. However, Zhang Lun and I have different paths. I still prefer to stay in the center. Zhang Lun is more suitable for the battlefield. Your Majesty, he will achieve greater success in the future."

Zhu Qizhen stood with his hands behind his back and pointed to the south:

"Have you seen the world map? I plan to set up military bases overseas. In the future, perhaps the entire Southeast Asia and Oceania will be our sphere of influence. Zhang Lun will be the commander-in-chief of the Pacific theater. He will certainly achieve greater success. Even so, do you still want to stay in the court?"

Yang Guifang nodded affirmatively: "Yes!"

Zhu Qizhen smiled approvingly: "I also need you to stay by my side. Don't worry, I will give you the opportunity to make achievements. I will go with you to Mobei and Fenglangjuxu."

Yang Guifang's eyes were full of anticipation.

……

Back at the Qianqing Palace, Zhu Qizhen summoned Yang Shan, the Minister of Rites. The imperial examination was over, and the next step was the palace examination. Yang Shan reported the admission situation in detail.

Zhu Qizhen was not surprised that Li Dongyang was the top scorer in the imperial examination. He was more concerned about the admissions of the technical subjects. Ten students were admitted to the mathematical subjects, eight to the agricultural subjects, ten to the medical subjects, and five to the engineering subjects.

In fact, China is not bad at mathematics. We have many mathematical works, such as "Nine Chapters on the Mathematical Art", "Zhoubi Suanjing", "Haidao Suanjing", "Zhang Qiujian Suanjing", "Jigu Suanjing", etc. We also have a group of mathematicians such as Liu Hui, Zu Chongzhi, Zhang Qiujian, Qin Jiushao, and Yang Hui, who have made important achievements in arithmetic, algebra, geometry and other fields.

Therefore, there are the most talents in mathematics.

There were fewer works on engineering, and Mengxi Bitan was one of the few works on physics. In chemistry, it was about alchemy and gunpowder, which seemed to have gone astray. In agriculture and medicine, China was even at the forefront.

Zhu Qizhen was generally satisfied with the admission results of the technical subjects. He ordered the Ministry of Personnel to directly arrange official positions for these people, without them having to wait like the successful Jinshi candidates.

"Are there any students from Kansai?" He looked at the list and noticed that Chen Wang from mathematics and Sun Yan from engineering were both from Kansai.

"Yes, Your Majesty." Yang Shan bowed, "Not only in the art exam, there are two candidates from Guanxi who have passed the imperial examination. However, they are all Han people from Guanxi, whose ancestors migrated there."

Zhu Qizhen laughed out loud: "In the future, we can also learn from the Tang Dynasty's 'Bingong Jinshi', that is, foreigners can also participate in our imperial examinations, people from the East, Southeast Asia, and the West are all welcome. Our Ming Dynasty absorbs talents from all countries."

Yang Shan agreed very much. He also yearned for the powerful Tang Dynasty, where students who came to the Tang Dynasty and passed the "Bingong Jinshi" examination could also become officials.

"You ask the Ministry of Rites to prepare. I will hold a banquet after the palace examination." Zhu Qizhen said.

"As you wish." Yang Shan was excited. "This is the largest number of people taking the imperial examinations in our dynasty. We should celebrate. It means that our Ming Dynasty is becoming more and more prosperous, and there are more and more scholars."

Zhu Qizhen laughed out loud and said, "There will be more in the future. Perhaps there will be tens of thousands of people taking the imperial examination. Hahahaha, Yang Aiqing, then your Imperial Academy will be small."

Yang Shan's eyes were bright and full of anticipation.

After all the ministers left, Zhu Qizhen began to review the memorials.

After a while, the chief eunuch Cao Jixiang came up with a memorial and reported: "Your Majesty, this is the secret report from the Ning family, which has just arrived at the Silijian."

Zhu Qizhen put down his pen, took the memorial, opened it and saw the beautiful handwriting. He really missed Ning Rongrong. When she was in the capital before, he would go to the guild hall when he was bored and torment her, which made him feel relaxed both physically and mentally.

He opened the letter and read it carefully.

Ning Rongrong has already established a foothold in the Kyushu region of Japan and occupied a piece of territory, and the daimyo have no objection. Because she has sold arms to two of them, the remaining daimyo got the news and contacted her.

With the secret support of the Ming Dynasty, her caravan grew rapidly, with more than 10,000 people, and had a great influence in Southeast Asia. While doing business with Western merchants, she was also a pirate and had destroyed several pirate groups in the local waters.

"He's really going to become the king of pirates." Zhu Qizhen muttered.

Of course, Ning Rongrong's focus is on managing Japan. She wants to take advantage of the chaos in Japan to firmly occupy the territory and gradually expand.

Zhu Qizhen frowned.

Next, the navy will be the focus of development, and an invincible fleet will be established for the Ming Dynasty. However, all this must wait until the great enemy of Mobei is completely resolved.

(End of this chapter)